Hogs have plenty in reserve for Missouri

Nate Allen, thecabin.net

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Excerpt:

FAYETTEVILLE - Before they sat the bench to start the game, Arkansas coach Mike Anderson had a sit-down with his ench [JB: sic - South African slang term for a cigarette] Tuesday night in Columbia, Mo.

The Razorbacks had prevailed, 82-68, in Saturday’s SEC victory over the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Walton Arena.

But his bench, a team strength must if his system is consistently to prevail, had been outscored, 13-5, by Mississippi State’s bench.

“Our bench has got to continue to get better,” Anderson told media during last Saturday’s postgame.

The “continue” part was public diplomacy [JB emphasis]. From what Anderson revealed on postgame radio after his Razorbacks dominated the Missouri Tigers, 94-61, in Tuesday night’s SEC game at Mizzou Arena in Columbia, “continue to get better” wasn’t part of the message to his reserves so much as you had better start getting better right now.”

“I challenged our bench,” Anderson said. “I said, ‘You guys haven’t been playing like [sic] you are capable of playing.”

Message received.

“The guys on the bench came in and played big for us,” Anderson said. ...